Sophomore guard Anthony Mosley netted a career-high 15 points against Bradley on Tuesday night. (Delaware sports information/Donna McBride)
NEWARK — The guys who grew up playing basketball with Anthony Mosley in Dover know he’s not afraid to take a shot.
That ability might come in handy over the next few months.
A backup guard used for his defense last season, Mosley will have to play more of a leading role now that the Delaware men’s basketball team has lost three of its 10 available scholarship players to injuries.
The sophomore looked the part on Tuesday night, doubling his previous career high with 15 points as the Blue Hens cruised to a 70-47 victory over Bradley at the Carpenter Center.
Delaware (3-2) was playing its first game since losing starter Chivarsky Corbett to a season-ending knee injury against Temple on Sunday. The game before, the Hens lost top reserve Devonne Pinkard for at least a month with a broken foot.
And reserve Eric Carter was lost for the year with a preseason foot injury.
Mosley, who grew up in Dover’s Capital School District before going to Sanford, said he wasn’t trying to force anything in Tuesday’s game.
“I just tried to let the game go as it went,” said Mosley, who was 7-for-10 from the floor. “I wasn’t trying to do too much at first. As I got going, I just started playing. That’s it.
“Chivarsky’s my best friend, so when he went down, it kind of shook me up a little bit. I just tried to do it for him — do what he would want me to do, and that’s step up.”
“You talk all the time about guys taking advantage of their opportunity,” said coach Monte’ Ross. “I thought Anthony Mosley did that to the highest level tonight — just taking advantage of what was presented to him. I couldn’t be prouder, I couldn’t be happier for him.”
With junior Cazmon Hayes netting a team-high 17 points for the second straight game, the Hens didn’t have much trouble with the youthful Braves (1-7). Bradley, under first-year coach Brian Wardle, have 10 freshmen on its roster.
Delaware only trailed in the opening nine minutes. The Hens took the lead for good at 12-11 on a pair of free throws from Hayes.
The margin of victory was Delaware’s largest since downing Penn by 23 points two years ago.
Besides Hayes and Mosley, Kory Holden (12) and Marvin King-Davis (11) also scored in double figures. Holden had seven assists with no turnovers, as well.
More than anything, Ross said he liked the attitude his players brought with them to the court.
“I thought these guys looked adversity right in the eye and they said, ‘Bring it on,’” he said. “I didn’t think there was any sense of feeling sorry for themselves. I thought they came out and played the way we expect them to play.”
“We’re going to have to get used to it because that’s how it’s going to be for the remainder of the year,” said Hayes. “We’re more than capable of doing it. We can’t use being tired as an excuse. We’ve all got to give it our all every night.”
“We still believe that we can win,” said Mosley. “All of us, in high school we were winners. We came here because we wanted to win. That’s what we’re going to strive for — nothing else.”
Of course, the Hens have much more challenging nights in front of them. On Thursday, they host South Florida at 7 p.m. before going on to the road for six straight games.
The depleted roster means Delaware is going to have to get some quality minutes from its four walk-on players, especially at guard, where the Hens basically have no reserves at the moment. Junior Curtis McRoy is the first guard off the bench right now.
Mosley should see his playing minutes increase dramatically. After averaging only 8.6 minutes per game as a freshman, he played a career-high 38 minutes on Tuesday.
And if the Hens need him to pick up his scoring pace, Mosley said he’s ready to do that, too.
“I expected myself to be solid, but I didn’t expect myself to play like that,” said Mosley, who also had four assists. “I just kind of went back to what I’m used to doing (at Sanford) — scoring.”
Free throws
The Hens are in the middle of a span in which they’ll play four games in eight days … Mosley’s previous career high was seven points. … Delaware and Bradley had only met once before, exactly 63 years ago, with the Braves winning 85-59 in Peoria, Ill. … Sophomore Skye Johnson had a career-high eight rebounds to go along with seven points. … Hayes’ 17 points matches his career high. He was only 6-of-19 from the floor. … Bradley is one of five Division I teams that have at least 10 freshmen.